Classical Notes: August 19, 2008 Archive

A nice tribute to The March King from the Wall Street Journal's Terry Teachout. Here's Sousa's foolproof recipe for a march:

"It must be as free from padding as a marble statue. Every line must be carved with unerring skill." Once the musical fat is trimmed away, he explained, a good march "stimulates every center of vitality, wakens the imagination and spurs patriotic impulses which may have been dormant for years."